Wednesday, July 8, 2009

My Dad: Super Cool Tractor Guy

How cool is my dad? I'll let you decide after showing you what my dad does for a living. This is another installment of my retelling of our adventures in Connecticut this June. Enjoy.

My dad is super cool. My dad fixes things for a living--you can't get much more optimistic than that. That's not to say that both my dad and I are not grim, we are. We're both the more serious and thoughtful sort that tend to notice the fact that there is liquid missing from the cup, you know, the glass half empty sort... But I digress. My dad fixes things, BIG things...

See that tiny man next to that gigantic tractor? That's my dad. Isn't he cool? I think so. For as long as I can remember, my dad has been a fixer. He used to build houses, too. But now he's just a mechanic. He lends out his services to any number of his many children and their spouses. I guess you could say he's a superhero of sorts. There was only one little incidence where my dad's superpowers got away from him. That was when he lent me his mechanics version of a "batmobile," that had been jimmy-rigged with special equipment in the trunk for fixing things and my kids stroller hit the special superhero switch and started a fire and made lots of smoke and I had to bail my kids' out on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. But he was sorry and promised to keep better track of his powers from then on.

If you're starting to think that my dad is cool, you haven't seen nothin' yet. You should see his forehead crinkles... They're amazing! I used to lay in bed at night when he was tucking me in and beg him to show me his forehead crinkles and then I would cry because I didn't have any. Anyhow, this is the shop where my dad works. He has the late shift right now--3pm to 11pm, which is why I was able to get a tour and take some photos when nobody was around.

Look at this. My dad likes to call it the "Pit of Despair" like from The Princess Bride. This is where the oil guy works. All the oil from the huge trucks gets emptied into that pit. And a guy works down there... Cool, huh?

This is on the inside of my dad's toolbox... He's pretty clever, too, just like me. Also, he's creative. I don't have a picture of it, but that wooden box below is something he attached to his toolbox to make a nice little tray attachment thing that all the other guys at his work are jealous of since they paid like $700 for something similar.

As I said, my dad is more serious-minded, but that isn't to say that he doesn't have a sense of humor. Quite the contrary. My dad has many a thing that makes him chuckle in his own little way. The above image is a prime example. In my dad's mind, its satisfyingly humorous--in his own way. Its hard to explain...

My dad also has an excellent memory. He's sort of like an encyclopedia for unimportant facts about people. You can watch any movie with him and he will have some interesting fact to tell you about at least one of the actors. He definitely has a great imagination. He used to tell me the best stories when I was little. My kids love him. He and Caiden were thick as thieves this trip. It was really too cute.

He's so fun! My dad just has this kind of mind that... so easily makes any situation fun or funny. Like here on the slide... He's pretending that he's really scared and proceeds to throw his hands in the air and yell as they all slide down. Who does that? MY DAD! I'm telling you: he's really cool!

My dad has this basement that is every boy's dream--filled with toys and tools and all manner of curious things and...its a basement. After I suggested that maybe Elliott should refrain from his daily/hourly trips down there because of his allergies, my dad proceeded to explain to me that I might as well castrate my son and prohibit him from being a boy. "Every boy needs a basement." he told me. Or a "man cave" as my step-mom puts it.

My dad just has such a full heart. Boyish even. He's so full of love. And you know what? My dad thinks I'm awesome. Not just because he has to. He really, actually, truly, literally thinks that I'm the best thing since sliced bread. And you know, that just feels really good sometimes.

That's my dad and his wife, Terrie. Aren't they sweet? We had such a fun time staying with them. My dad says you can tell its going to be a great day when you wake up and Terrie has made coffee. Otherwise: "This is going to be a rotten day, I can just tell!" Its funny--to my dad. In his own way... Its hard to explain.

Gosh, there's so much more to tell about my dad, but... This will have to do for now. I love you, Dad. And I really, really miss you. Come visit soon!